Both EDC boards take no action on long-term funding as a commissioner pushes to send their sales tax to street repairs. Board B approves nearly $21,000 to keep the animal shelter open.
By Jett Whittington | The Alliance Gazette
RANGER, Texas | Ranger’s two economic development boards declined on Monday to take any action on their long-term funding, holding their ground as pressure builds to redirect the sales tax revenue that keeps them running. Both boards of the Ranger Economic Development Corporation met in a called meeting on August 10 at 4:00 p.m. to take up the question of long-term funding. Board B also considered a request from the Ranger Animal Shelter for help paying for repairs.
Board A holds firm
Board A opened with public comment from Kevan Moize, who raised a TCEQ violation the EDC was cited for over an unpermitted burn. Moize argued the EDC should not be the scapegoat for a burn it did not authorize and urged the board to investigate who authorized it. On the funding item, he asked the board to table the matter, saying he opposes dissolution but believes the current EDC has been paying for projects that are not economic development.
City Commissioner Jared Calvert, who also sits on Board B, laid out the case for change. Pointing to rising costs facing the city, Calvert said he believes Ranger should let voters decide whether the sales tax revenue now directed to the EDC should keep flowing to the corporation or be redirected to a dedicated street fund for road improvements. He added that even if the EDC were dissolved, its existing assets would remain designated for economic development and would not roll into the city’s general fund.
The board pushed back. President MJ Dawson said she would be willing to keep the EDC operating without the sales tax, noting there are legal ways to fund a corporation without tax revenue. Doyle Russell questioned both the legality and the practicality of that approach, and Dawson reiterated that legal methods exist.
Angela Deacon pressed on what a redirected tax would actually cover, asking whether sidewalks would be included, how long a street tax would last, and whether the EDC would ever get the revenue back. She said plainly that dissolving the EDC is not an option. Vicki Doyle suggested the city adjust how the sales tax is disbursed rather than cut the EDC off entirely, warning that growth is moving toward Ranger and the city could be caught unprepared. Sheila Bond agreed, saying growth would stall without the EDC.
After discussion, the board voted unanimously to take no action.
Board B funds the animal shelter
Board B met immediately after, since most members serve on both boards. It opened with public comment from Moize, who claimed Board B had rushed an approval for a mural and was moving ahead of the city commission by weighing funding before the commission has settled the EDC’s future.
On the animal shelter request, Animal Control Officer Carrie Pilant told the board the shelter has been on probationary status for at least a year and that she has been asking the city for help with repairs so it can pass inspection. The minimum work needed to pass would cost just under $21,000. That money would otherwise come from the shelter’s limited donation fund, Pilant said, and spending it would leave the shelter with nothing to operate on, which is why she brought the request to the EDC. Moize spoke against the request, arguing the project belongs under the city commission rather than the EDC.
Calvert questioned whether completing the full repair list now would only lead to larger costs later, and asked whether spray foam could go on the roof alone rather than parts of the walls. Neither Pilant nor Chief Rodriguez could confirm whether that would work. Pilant explained that the proposed repairs are only what is needed to pass the state inspection set for September 17, and that more funding could not be secured before that date.
The board moved to approve the funding, pending confirmation of legality from the city attorney and the state comptroller.
Back to the funding question
Taking up long-term funding again, Board B also took no further action. John Boyett said the EDC could keep operating and fund itself if the boards are careful with their priorities. Calvert again supported diverting funds to street repair, explaining the redirected sales tax could cover roads, sidewalks, and mowing as long as the work is in the public right-of-way. He repeated his view that the EDC has failed Ranger throughout its existence. Dawson responded that the board has made slow progress in the community under her tenure, which Calvert did not dispute.
